Lumber-loading dock



Feb; 7, 192s. 1,658,770

J. A. MURRAY ET AL Lumsrm LOADING nocx Filed May 12. 192e s sheets-sheet 2 fr); n

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FIL l I W 7 JE "P JM 5 .l n l y n I- o N l "'N :u y i* sh a xt" INVENTOR. N a @imi/564172Z! e @KZ Y ATTORY.

Feb. 7, 1928.

J. A. MURRAY ET AL LUMBER LOADING lnocx Filed May 12. 1926 3 Sheets-Sheet 3 IN VEN TOR.

Patented Feb. 7,

JOHN A. MURRAY AND EUGENE B. MCINTYRE, OE

san rnenoisoo, oALironnra.

LUMBnn-nonmuef DOCK.

Application led May 1%,

This invention relates to e lumber loading doch, and its object is to provide ineens whereby piles et lumber `may be assen'ilgiled in a givenplace tor loading on its trucks tor shipment to yvarious points at which .the lumber is to be used;

lt will be understood by the art and persons operating lumber yards that orders 'tor lumber tor local delivery will include o. truck load more or less ot lumber ot various sizes and kinds, the ordinary practice to provide the yard with a series ot two 'Wheel truc is upon which live hundrechsr. hundred or one 'thousand lect ot lumber is placed and then the lumber placed upon several ot these different trucks is ice-assembled upon a series oit' horses trom Which horses it is transterred to the city truck for delivery on the liob, a given load ot lumber ott-en having four or `live ditterent lrinds ot materiel assembled "trom as many difterent places in' the yard. linesmuch the horses or ti'essels are movable und more or less insecure, it is not possible to provide them with rollers tor rolling the load onto the rollers ot the city truck or delivery truck, so that accidents :trequently happen in transferring the load from the tressels to the truck. l

ln the present case, a series olloading` platforms are used, each loading plattorm having a series ot roller supports upon which a load oit lumber may be assembled by a lumber urrier which lui'nber carrier it'orms no part ot the present invention,` and from which roller platt'orm the load is transferred to the delivery truck in a very t'ew minutes by simply releasing a lock on one ot' the rollers.

`Another object ot 'this invention is to .reduce the number ot handlings ot the lumber.

From What has been said, it will be apparent that it the delivery truck is to have an entire load made up ot one kind ot lumber, that the lumber carrier could place that load in position on the platform to be transterredto the delivery truck, Without repil-` ing again, at leastthe lumber carrier can place-as much on the roller plattorm'as the those skilled in .iirst part ot the load which happens to be` ot the same kind oit' material.

Another object ot 4the invention is to provide an apparatus ot the' class described in which space between each roller plattorm "rollers being made up in 192e. Serin No. 103,472.

and the next roller platform will be provided i-or placing the top portion ot the dclivery truck load Whichis then transferred tothe foundation portion .manually or other Wise.

Another object ot the invention is to pr`ovide a platform ot `the character described in which tivo roll-er platforms will .be set up adjacent each other, While between the next pair will be space tor the lumber carrier to drive `in and leave its load.

Another object ot the invention is to provide means whereby the lumber supporting rollers muy `be raised to `receive the load when the lumber carrier brings the load to the loading doch or platform. f

Another object ot the invention is ,to lock the lumber rolls so that they lumber cannot be accidentally discharged from the rolls said rolls being placed ona slight incline to malte the lumber roll on to the truclr easily when desired.

Gperations carried out `with this lumber loading system makes a saving ot trom seventynfive cents to one dollar per their sand board teet in handling the lumber trom` a large commercial yard to the city `delivery trucks. i @ther objects ot the invention will appear as thedescription proceeds.

An embodimentot ,the invention is shown in the accompanying drawings in which the same reifer-ence numeralis applied `to the same portion throughout, ibut We are aware that there may be modilications thereof.

Figure lis a plan viewot a portion of l the loading platform showing tivo oit the roller platforms, `and a portion .oit another,

Figure 2 is a side elevation ot one ot the roller platforms'showing the means tor raising the lumber support-ing rollers to receive the load, andillustrating the positionroccupied by one o the delivery trucks `when about to receive the load, theload on the this instanceiot two different kinds ot material, v

Figure 3 yis a sectional wieurot the main `pla-ttorin showing .the lumber carrier fdischarging substantially a "lull .load ot `one kind et lumber upon thefsupportiug rollers, while a small portion vota dilterent'lrind of lumber has been discharged at the side et the roller doel; preparatoryto being placed upon theload upon the rollers.

The numeral 1 represents e suitable plat` los y lll) between the rollers.

'forni supported on posts 2 in sullicient number as maybe necessary to provide a substantial support for the lumber carrier 3 to drive on. A suitable incline from' the `ejround level is provided at one point for the lumber carrier to drive up on the platform l, but which incline forms no part of the present invention therefore is not illustrated. Ordinarily the platform may be `several hundred feetlong and may have a dozen or more sets of rollers thereon.

At the edge of the platform there are open spaces `in each of which are mounted four lixed shafts 5 to S inclusive, and on these shafts are mounted eight heavy bell crank arms 9 to l2 inclusive, two on each shaft. The upper ends of the bell crank arms have journals to support the horizontal rollers 13 to 16 inclusive, the latter of which is somewhat larger and heavier than the other three since it must support substantially all of the load during a portion of the time it is being transferred to thc'delivery truck. The roller 16 isprovided with a pawl wheel 1T at one end, and with a pawl 18 pvotally connected on the bell crank 1Q. kAn arm 19 on the pawl enablesit to be disengaged from the pawl wheel 17 when it is desired to transfer the load of lumber to the delivery truck. i

Below the platformA l there is a heavy yoke 20, its members 20 being connected to the lower ends of the bell cranks 5to 8 inelusive by means of rods 21-22 to 24 inclusive. The yoke has a chain 25 connected thereto at one end, said clfain passing around a grooved pulley 27 pivotally carried by a depending bracket 28. On the top of the platform there is a notched plate 29, and the chain can be pulled up or dropped through the hole in the platform and stopped by engaging it with the notched plate 29.

Each set of rollers is substantially the same in constructionand operation as each other set, so it will be unnecessary to describe more than one, other than to say that at the sides of the opcningsextending along thecnds of the rollers there is a heavy anlale plate 30 to prevent the lumber carrier from running oit the platform into'thc hole 'lwo sels ol rollers are assembled close enough to cach other so that only the wheels of the lumber' carrier can pass between them, while the next two adjacent setsare far enough from each other to enable the lumber carrier to drive on that platform with a full load of lumber, and not interfere with the action of the lumber earrier with respect to either of the sets of rollers when a foundation load is to be placed directly upon the rollers.

The lumber carrier 3 is merely diagrammatically illustrated, and forms no part of the present invention. It has the supporting wheels 32?-34 and suitable means 3,5-36 at each side to pick up the loaded lumber bunks 38--39 of which two are ordinarily used to carry a load.

The delivery truck is illiistrated at 39 and the platform is bumper at 40 to prevent the delivery truck from backing into the lumber platform and injuring the same.

rllhe operation of the apparatus is as follows: An order will be given for a load of lumber possibly made up of three or four different kindsof lumber, the wfu'lnnan in the yard will first place the l'muidation load for the delivery truck on a pair of the bunks whereupon the lumber carrier will go to that point, pick up the load and carry it over the rollers when they are in the down posltiolnas illustrated at the right of the lumber carrier 1n Figure 3 and then aworkman will pull on the chain and hook it into the plate 29. This will brinar the rollers up close to the load of lumber supported by the carrier, thereupon the carrier man will lower the load of lumber untilits issupported by the rollers 13`to 16 and the bunks will then be removed from the load entirely. As soon as the bunks are ren'ioved, the lumber carrier is free to go elsewhere to pick up another load or part of a load. If the load the lumber carrier rollers is all that the tended to take, nothing further is needed, but if the load is only a portion of a load the lumber carrier will bring `up the load and deposit it on the platform, as shown at the left hand side of the lumber carrier in Figure 3@ This portion of the load will then be piled by hand or otherwise, on the load already placed on the rollers, and as soon as the pile is complete the delivery truck man will roll the same olf the rollers onto the delivery truck.

It will thus be seen that there may be a half dozen or a dozen loads in process of formation all the time on the suliportinker rollers, and that whenever a load is complete it may be ilmncdiately loaded onto one of the delivery trucks, the rollers beiner lowered to allow the .lumber carrier lo brun; on a fresh foundation load.

It will be noted that in Alliafure 3 the huuber carrier has brought on to the rollers` a substantially complete load, while in Figure 2 the load is made up of two dil-ferent kinds of lumber, a portion of a load also having; been brought into the intermediate platform in Figure 3. t

Having thus described our invention, what we desire to secure by Letters .Patent of the United States' is as follows, but modifications maybe made in carrying1 out the invention as shown in the drawings and. in the above particularly described form thereof, within the purview of the annexed claims:

l. A lumber platform comprising an eledelivery` truck is inprovided with a heavy has placed upon the vated platform, a series of rollers spaced apart transversely of said platform, said rollers havingr a pitch upward from front to back, the front roller having a larger diameter than the others, means on said front roller to prevent its turningl at Will, and means to raise oi' lower all of said rollers simultaneously.

2. A lumber leading platform comprising a plurality of movable rollers having a pitch upward from front to bach, means to lock the lfront roller from turning, said front roller having a larger diameter than the others, means to raise or lower all of said rollers simultaneously, and means to hold said rollers in the raised position to receive a load of lumber thereon.

3. A lumber loadingr platform comprising` an elevated platform, a plurality of movable transverse rollers thereon, said rollers having an upward pitch from front to back, the `front roller having the largest diameter of the series, means to raise all of said rollers simultaneously to enable them to receive a load of lumber to be discharged upon a delivery truck, means to lock the rollers iii an elevated posit-ion, and means to lock said front roller from turning.

4;. A lumber loading platform comprising a series of loadsupporting' rollers, means to p rollers, said series of rollers having a pitch upward from front to back. y

5. A lumber loading platform comprising an elevated platform, several sets of horizontal roller supports, each of which is to receive a load of lumber, said sets being spaced apart from each other on one side far enough to enable the wheel of a lumber carrier to pass between them, and far enough apart on the other side to permit the lumber carrier to drive between them to deposit a load upon a platform at substantially the elevation of the roller platform.

6. A lumber loading platform coiiiprisingi,r an elevated platform, a series of sets of horizontal rollers thereon placed at an incline, means to lock one of said rollers, means to release it whereby the load of lumber thereon may be transferred to a delivery truck, and means to raise and lower said rollers simul- 'taneously 

